The Law Society rejected the removal of the provisions, saying that they were beneficial to employers.

Angharad Harris, chair of the Law Society’s employment law committee, explained that, under the Equality Act, an employer is not held responsible for the third-party harassment in itself, but for failing to act when it happens or for not taking steps to prevent it.

She said: “The benefit of the third-party harassment provisions is that they have encouraged best practice among employers and this, in turn, helps to reduce potential incidents of harassment at work.”…